Now and Forever
by TryxeyHobbitses
Summary: Aang and Katara visit the Southern Water Tribe four years after departing on their journey. Kataang...some very VERY vague hints of Zutara.


**ATLA Does not belong to me...**

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She smiled down at him thinking that he always seemed to sleep so peacefully these days. It had been years since the comet and yet it still felt like it had only been days. After the initial round of celebrations, the listlessness had begun to settle in. Slowly, one by one all of the gathered allies had begun to depart. Though it was sad to see them go, it was also gratifying to know that they could return home and begin to build new lives for themselves without fears of recrimination from an evil overlord bent on destruction of all that stood against him. Saying goodbye to her father had been the hardest. However, it was past time for the warriors to return home and rebuild. She could still remember the look he gave her as he prepared to leave, knowing that neither she nor her brother would be returning home with him. He knew that though the war was over, there were still many tasks that must be settled before the two would return home. So, on they traveled from town to town attempting to return the stability that had sorely been missing from so many lives. Often she longed for the sight of her home, she missed the cool southern air and the native waters whose essence resonated so strongly with her own. But, looking down at his serene expression, she knew that she was where she belonged.

He stirred and smiled a lazy smile, "Katara?" He asked absently, rubbing his eyes, "You're awake already?"

"I couldn't sleep," she told him as she returned his grin, "It has been so long since the last time I was home. I'm sure that it has changed so much, there are even benders there now."

Sitting up, he reached for her hands, all hint of sleep now fully dissipated. "Then we should wake the others and get going. I'm sure that Sokka is as excited as you are to be returning home." And within the space of a single breath he had broken down their camp site, save the tent that the others were still in.

Would she ever get used to how easy it was for him to move at the speed of wind? She didn't think so. As she mused, she ambled over to where her brother and Suki slept, waking them quickly as Aang swept their tent away from about them. The pair looked as though they could easily have slept another hour, but time was moving quickly and as the sun crept into the sky, her excitement grew. She handed each member of their small party dried fruit as they mounted up and prepared to take off. As she, Sokka, and Suki took their places, Katara stared at Aang's back, letting her gaze linger on the all too prominent scar. She could remember what it had felt like when she thought she might lose him. She smiled to herself as she noticed that the scar seemed smaller and realized it wasn't that the scar was smaller, merely that Aang was larger. Much larger in fact, he was no longer the small boy she had awakened. He was tall and lithe, and all whipcord muscle. She couldn't actually remember when he had grown, simply that he had done so with her remaining almost oblivious to the change until now. Feeling her eyes upon him, he turned and smiled, "Everybody ready?" They nodded. "Then off we go. Yip Yip!" In an instant, they were off and moving swiftly through the air

As they approached the home she had left four years ago, the air grew colder, but she couldn't feel it because the excitement buzzed through their group like an electric current. She spotted her father waiting for hem on the ground and before they were fully landed, she jumped down using a gentle sloping wave of ice to bring her to him. She threw her arms around him and shouted, "Father! It has been far too long since we saw you last."

Her father returned her embrace and then set her away from him so that he could take a look at her. "Katara, you have grown into quite the young lady these past few years. You remind me so much of your mother." He smiled as he noticed Sokka approaching, "And who is this mighty warrior that draws near?" They clasped forearms and pulled each other in for a tight embrace.

"Father," Sokka said as they released each other, "I have missed you. It is good to be home. I have a surprise for you" He pulled Suki to his side and showed his father her burgeoning stomach.

Aang watched the reunion and stood back awkwardly…he didn't really know where he fit into this picture until Hakoda looked up and smiled warmly at him. "Aang!" Hakoda bowed to him, "It is always an honor when the Avatar chooses to visit!" He felt himself being pulled into a warm embrace and returned the hug with sincerity and true affection.

"Hakoda, it is good to see you." Aang said as he took in the surroundings, "I see that the influence of the northern water tribe is growing in the south. Pakku's new school must be attracting a great number of new water benders."

"It has forced our small village to grow quickly, I will take you there to see the school later, but enough about that – how are things?" He asked as Katara, Suki, and Sokka headed off to find accommodations.

"The new Fire Lord is doing much to make reparations; he has pooled the resources of his nation to aid in the rebuilding of many of the cities destroyed during his father's reign. We have been traveling to many of these cities in order to –"

Hakoda cut him off, "Yes, Avatar, I am aware of Zuko's progress, I was wondering more about your relationship with my daughter. She has been traveling with you for some time and never left your side. I know that she is more than an advisor and traveling companion, I see how she watches you and how you hover over her. What exactly is it that you are planning for her? Sokka and Suki are going to be staying here, for a little while at least and when they leave here it won't be to travel around with you anymore it will be to go back to Kyoshi."

Aang blushed; he didn't really know what to say. He knew that her father was expecting a response. He and Katara hadn't really spoken about it; he had always simply assumed that she would continue on with him the same as always. Aang hesitated and spoke slowly, "Well… to be honest. I don't really know….I haven't even considered the possibility that Katara wouldn't be leaving with me…and I hadn't really thought about what that would mean once Sokka and Suki weren't with us. I just know that I couldn't bear the thought of her not being there with me…" Aang trailed off, staring thoughtfully down at the snow covered ground.

Hakoda looked intently at the young Avatar, "I guess you have some thinking to do while you are here."

The rest of the day passed by in a blur, Katara had been amazed by the level of growth their tiny ice village had undergone in just four short years. Their village was on the way to becoming a full blown city. Sokka and Suki had set about finding a more permanent residence that they would stay in after she and Aang were gone. For the first time since learning of Suki's pregnancy and Sokka's decision to remain sedentary at least for a while, Katara realized what it meant. Sokka would be leaving. She couldn't remember a time when she had been without her brother, and the idea of being separated from him now was almost painful. She didn't know what she would do without him there. It seemed that everyone was moving on, growing up, and getting on with their lives, no longer were they the rag-tag group of kids that banded together to save the world from an oppressive overlord. Zuko was now a king, Sokka and Suki were about to have a child. Aang was the Avatar, and it was his mission to travel the world restoring balance to the four nations while searching for evidence that any of the elusive air benders had escaped the genocide. Even Toph had returned home to battle it out with her parents and carve her own impressions upon her fiercely staid and traditional sires. Where did that leave her? Still trailing along behind Aang she guessed. She jumped up and ran across the room as Aang entered, throwing her arms around him and squeezing him tight with a needy desperation that seemed foreign to her.

Aang returned her embrace, feeling a sense of fear snake up from his toes to wrap tightly around his stomach. "Katara, what's wrong?"

She buried her head deeper into his strong chest as Aang began to rub her back slowly. "Aang…I don't know. I just keep thinking that there has to be something more for me. I mean I get it; I had purpose just a little while ago. We were on this mission to save the world and I was an instrumental part of your team then, but now…I just feel like there is no point to me even continuing on with you."

Aang froze, this is what he had feared, Katara was going to leave him. He was going to be alone. He was…– he hadn't responded he realized. He held her more tightly to him, "Katara, I need you. I need you with me. Everywhere I go I am expected to be this great mediator, this symbol and beacon of everything that is supposed to be right with the world, but isn't. People expect me to reconcile their disputes, take on their problems, and change their lives, and I try to do it because I know this is what I am supposed to do. But Katara, I'm just a kid…I'm 16 and all of it is very heavy for me." He paused for a moment to inhale. "You…you remind me of why I do what I do. Your kindness, your strength, your wisdom, and…" He paused lifting her face up to his, "…your love." He said the last as he kissed her softly on the lips. When she sighed, he took a moment to breathe it in. "Your breath is my breath, my soul, my air. I live in the span of your inhalations and exhalations and if you weren't with me, I don't know if I could continue…I don't even know if I would want to."

She looked up at him. She knew that he loved her, but she hadn't really known what that had meant or even how deep those emotions ran. They had been just kids when she had left home to join him and she hadn't fully understood the bond that had grown between them when they had first determined that she would be his "forever girl." She hadn't even had a clue what that really meant. Over the years as they had traveled together, she had caught glimpses of what it would mean to fully love someone. She had watched her brother with Yue and then with Suki, she knew that his sun rose and set on their smiles— but she had always wondered if she and Aang had the same thing. Sure they kissed, they hugged, and they told each other that they loved one another, but until exactly this moment she hadn't known how deeply those emotions ran for him. She hadn't known…she thought at one point that she had felt strong affection for Zuko, but she knew now that all of their passion, their rushed embraces, and their fire had been just that…passion, not love. Looking up at Aang now, she knew that his words were true and she also knew that she felt the same. "Aang…I don't know what to say…or even if I have the words—"

Aang cut her off before she could even finish the sentence, fearing her next words. "Don't make any decisions just yet, let's just take our time here while we are in your home and try to sort things out when the time comes." He kissed her again, this time more deeply and with all of the desperation of a man about to loose the woman he loved.

She felt his raw need and returned the kiss with equal fervor. She moaned softly into his mouth as he intertwined his hands in her hair and angled her head back to gain better access to her mouth. He swallowed her moan and his breathing became ragged as her heart began to slam itself against her ribcage. He was holding her so tightly that she was certain that he would be able to feel it. She knew that she should stop him, that she should take the time to tell him that she loved him too, but she couldn't force herself to concentrate on anything save the taste of him and the feel of his hard planes molding themselves to her soft curves. She was shocked to discover that this is what she had been missing with him. This all-consuming passion that resided so strongly with the deepest of bonds was what had been missing in their relationship before that had thrown her into Zuko's arms only to have her leave them feeling as if she had just missed something wonderful. Oh there had been passion by the boatload, but there had been no stronger connection than that. This however was her balance…she was at home now. That was the last sane thought that resonated throughout her mind as one of his hands began to travel down her body.

The hand stopped on her bottom and cupped it, pulling her most private places closer to his body and she felt him against her, stiff as stone and it made her flow like water. His other hand left her hair and traveled downwards until both hands were cupping her and lifting her up against him. She wrapped her legs around his waist as she returned his ardent kisses with a passion of her own.

He could feel the heat of her on him as he held her there and began to trail his lips from hers to her jaw and down her neck. He streamed kisses from behind her ear to her collarbone reveling in the ability to touch her and feel her this way. He had dreamed of this, of her soft, warm, and wanting and he had lain awake at night rock hard and aching. He didn't know how much more he should really do, but he wanted her so much he couldn't really summon up the will to care. He laid her down gently against the bed and crawled on top of her until he was lying with every single inch of his body on hers. She reached up and trailed her fingers over his scalp, softly tracing his tattoos and he felt his body begin to burn. The fire seemed to flow from her fingertips through his scalp and down his body directly to his groin making him tighten with almost painful intensity. He whimpered in agony knowing they should stop, that he shouldn't go any farther.

She sensed his indecision and she slipped her hands under his shirt, tracing each and every muscle in his back as she gently pulled him down to her. She smiled at him as she caught his lips with her own. She coaxed his lips back open and explored the recesses of his mouth while continuing to stroke his back until she felt him relax again. She pulled his shirt over his head and after deftly tossing it aside, pulled his ear to her lips and whispered one word, "Yes." She then sucked gently on his earlobe. She smiled as she heard his intake of breath and repeated again, "Yes."

Hearing her breathy acquiescence was like a bomb to the floodgates of Aang's passion. He felt his fire begin to rise and closed his eyes and threw his head back and let the heat claim him. He went wild for her. He rained kisses all across her face and throat as his hands attempted to touch every inch of her flesh at once. He quickly divested her of her outer garments leaving her only in her under things. Seeing her like this for the first time caused Aang to forget how to breathe for a moment before his hands were on her again. He was shocked to see waves of steam rising from her body. He looked to her face afraid that he had hurt her. He instead was further aroused to see no pain, but instead a heavy lidded mind melting look of dazed passion. He let his hands rest lightly over her chest and delighted in her body's reaction as her nipples hardened under his palm. He took a firmer grasp of her nipples through the cloth and reveled in the little moans and hitches in her breath that indicated her pleasure.

He looked up at her questioningly as he moved to remove her undergarments and was encouraged by her brilliant smile. When he could finally touch her peaked flesh with no barrier a fresh wave of steam filled the room. He traced a path from her collarbone to each nipple with his tongue. He loved the way she tasted and he wanted more. He sucked greedily at her nipples and moved to the underside of her breast laving attention upon her delicate flesh. He kissed his way down each of her ribs pausing at her small bellybutton to quickly dart his tongue into the small crevice. He heard her giggle and smiled into her stomach. He continued his path downwards, his breath growing choppy as he approached the very center of her. He paused for a moment attempting to calm his fevered body before descending upon her.

Her mind was reeling. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined that her body would respond this way to Aang. Her love for him had always seemed so pure and untainted by anything carnal so…- that was the last sane thought that her mind could hold on to as she went wild and became a primal being under his lips. His lips melted her very being into a sopping pool of water. Her pleasure was increased at the sound of his soft breathy moans that he released into her. She reached out, pulling his head closer to her as she felt the tension rising in her body. His tongue felt so warm to her, so hot just like another tongue had so long ago when she had been ignorant of – her world exploded. She felt as if her body was flung in a million directions and the only thing holding her together was the rhythmic throbbing between her legs. The entire room filled with steam. The air so heavy that she thought she might float away in this cloud of heated moisture. She and Aang took no notice as he slowly made his way back up her body and leaned over her looking down.

Aang looked into her eyes as she smiled up at him. She was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen with her flushed skin and slightly parted moist lips. The taste was so sweet that he groaned and pressed his kiss deeper. He felt his body tighten painfully when she returned his kiss. He settled himself lightly over her, his stiff manhood pressing slightly but insistently against her opening. The feeling was fantastical, incredible, amazing. He took amount to revel in her closeness, to feel her wet heat against his own fevered member. She arched her hips causing his head to slip inside. She sighed. Aang froze, he had to. He almost for a second thought that he was losing it right then. That he was going to finish in that exact instant. It was embarrassing. He needed to calm down. After remaining still for a couple of brief seconds, he whispered to her, "Please don't move…I'm very close already." With that he slowly slid inch by glorious inch deeper inside of her.

When he was finally sheathed to the hilt he exhaled and realized that he had been holding his breath. With his eyes closed, he slowly pulled back and pushed back in. Once he felt more in control he opened his eyes and focused on her beautiful face. He nodded, letting her know that he was now in control. Her enthusiastic response almost undid him, but he was firmly in the driver's seat now. He began to increase his tempo as she gripped his rear tightly pulling him to her, urging him deeper, faster. The pair found themselves buffeted up on a sudden gust of wind hovering for a moment. They smiled at each other. Aang began to move more surely as he became more in tune with what it was she needed. They kissed passionately, she drug her nails down his back, he bid gown lightly on her shoulder and pounded faster and faster in and out of her tight sheath. He felt her quiver and tighten and knew her ending was coming soon. His testicles tightened in response. Then, suddenly, she creamed out and shuddered around him, her insides gripping his shaft tightly and releasing over and over again, pulling him, urging him on as she reached completion. At her body's insistent urging, he felt his entire body constrict as tingles began to run along the length of his body head to toe. He looked down and saw that the arrows on his hands were glowing and then he was in oblivion.

Katara looked up at him thorough her own haze of passion as light filled the room. Surely everyone outside could see the light shining from the window. Aang seemed to be filled with pure energy that radiated out of him as he shot rope after rope of his seed into her trembling, waiting womb. When he finished, the light dissipated and all of the tension left Aang's body. She watched his eyes dim until she could finally see their natural coloring return. He was gazing at her with such a look of profound love and joy that she couldn't hold back any longer. She grasped his face and whispered, "I love you now and forever. I will not leave you and will always remain at your side as long as you have need of me."

Aang held her tight and whispered back, "Then we will never part. I love you. I need you, now and forever. I could be without you as long as I could be without my own breath. I want to walk beside you through this life and the next and continue until all eternity must take note of the force of this power which makes all others pale in comparison. I am nothing without you."


End file.
